Thanks for providing a great link to one of the great sporting events of the last 50 years. A who's who of outstanding athletes.
The cold war between the U.S. and the U.S.S.R. was palpable and worrisome, especially during the 1960's. I was a kid during the Cuban missile crisis, but even I recognized how scary that situation was. My fourth grade teacher actually asked us in the middle of class to pray that the crisis end peacefully.
Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 3392 Location: peoples democratic republic of yorkshire Country:
Posted: Wed Jul 25, 2012 1:16 am Post subject:
well, i'm finally getting excited over the olympics. been watching a string of documentaries on various olympians such as vic pendleton and usain bolt and have been inspired. the world will be watching us this friday! _________________
Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 3392 Location: peoples democratic republic of yorkshire Country:
Posted: Fri Jul 27, 2012 12:54 am Post subject:
well, the olympic football has started by upsetting the north korean women's team. on the screen the flag of south korea was displayed next to team members! _________________
well, the olympic football has started by upsetting the north korean women's team. on the screen the flag of south korea was displayed next to team members!
The North Koreans will probably want to declare war over this insult.
LONDON -- It's a tale of Olympian proportions: A man, a rickshaw, and a slow journey from a Chinese village to London through 16 countries.
Chinese farmer Chen Guanming claimed Thursday that his two-year odyssey to the London Games took him from Thailand's floods to Tibet to snowed-in Turkey to Britain since he started in 2010.
The 57-year-old, who said he had never traveled outside China before this trip, said he wanted to support the athletes and "spread the Olympic spirit." He's also seeking a last-minute ticket to attend Friday's opening ceremony.
"I came to support and cheer all the people from all over the world who are participating in the sports," said Chen, who sports a silvery white beard and a small ponytail. "I'm volunteering, I'm not looking for a reward."
His three-wheeled rickshaw, loaded with his possessions, is plastered with pictures of him posing in front of international landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Chen said he became inspired to come to London at the end of the Beijing Olympics in 2008, when British media invited him to the next Games. He didn't have a ticket, but he promised them he would get there.
According to Chen, his journey began in April 2010 in his village in eastern China's Jiangsu province, where he farms rice and other crops. Over the next two years, he said he covered 16 countries including Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan, Turkey and Italy.
His worst experiences, he said, were travelling during Thailand's floods and being trapped in freezing temperatures in the snow in Turkey. He arrived in Britain by ferry from France on July 6, he said.
Chen said he started arranging his visas beginning in 2009 and was helped financially by friends and kind people -- especially Chinese communities -- wherever he went.
His account cannot be independently verified and it is not clear how he managed to traverse so many countries' borders. A BBC interview with him, however, showed tourist visa stamps in his passport from countries including Pakistan, Thailand and Iran. A YouTube video posted in May shows him in Rome, surrounded by curious passersby.
John Beeston, a British insurance broker who spoke some Mandarin, said he found Chen looking lost on London's bustling streets on July 9.
"We are trying desperately to get him into the opening ceremony because his story has to go around the world," he said.
But Chen is proud of his epic journey even if he does not get into Olympic Stadium.
"I came. I did it. I'm very happy to have come to beautiful London," he said.
His journey doesn't end with the British capital. In a month or two, he said he plans to take a ship to the U.S. and Canada, and he also wants to go to Brazil.
Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 46182 Location: Los Skandolous, California Country:
Posted: Fri Jul 27, 2012 3:23 am Post subject:
niknik wrote:
Man rides rickshaw to London
Associated Press
LONDON -- It's a tale of Olympian proportions: A man, a rickshaw, and a slow journey from a Chinese village to London through 16 countries.
Chinese farmer Chen Guanming claimed Thursday that his two-year odyssey to the London Games took him from Thailand's floods to Tibet to snowed-in Turkey to Britain since he started in 2010.
The 57-year-old, who said he had never traveled outside China before this trip, said he wanted to support the athletes and "spread the Olympic spirit." He's also seeking a last-minute ticket to attend Friday's opening ceremony.
"I came to support and cheer all the people from all over the world who are participating in the sports," said Chen, who sports a silvery white beard and a small ponytail. "I'm volunteering, I'm not looking for a reward."
His three-wheeled rickshaw, loaded with his possessions, is plastered with pictures of him posing in front of international landmarks such as the Eiffel Tower in Paris and the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Chen said he became inspired to come to London at the end of the Beijing Olympics in 2008, when British media invited him to the next Games. He didn't have a ticket, but he promised them he would get there.
According to Chen, his journey began in April 2010 in his village in eastern China's Jiangsu province, where he farms rice and other crops. Over the next two years, he said he covered 16 countries including Vietnam, Thailand, Pakistan, Turkey and Italy.
His worst experiences, he said, were travelling during Thailand's floods and being trapped in freezing temperatures in the snow in Turkey. He arrived in Britain by ferry from France on July 6, he said.
Chen said he started arranging his visas beginning in 2009 and was helped financially by friends and kind people -- especially Chinese communities -- wherever he went.
His account cannot be independently verified and it is not clear how he managed to traverse so many countries' borders. A BBC interview with him, however, showed tourist visa stamps in his passport from countries including Pakistan, Thailand and Iran. A YouTube video posted in May shows him in Rome, surrounded by curious passersby.
John Beeston, a British insurance broker who spoke some Mandarin, said he found Chen looking lost on London's bustling streets on July 9.
"We are trying desperately to get him into the opening ceremony because his story has to go around the world," he said.
But Chen is proud of his epic journey even if he does not get into Olympic Stadium.
"I came. I did it. I'm very happy to have come to beautiful London," he said.
His journey doesn't end with the British capital. In a month or two, he said he plans to take a ship to the U.S. and Canada, and he also wants to go to Brazil.
If you guys aren't already aware, Japan beat Spain 1-0 in the football tournament. Yay!
~
Yuki Otsu goal helps Japan stun 10-man Spain
The vast majority in a healthy Hampden Park attendance of 37,726 turned up with the expectancy of being dazzled by the reigning world and European champions. They left having witnessed something else; a terrific Japanese performance which left Spain in the rare position of having received a bloody nose. But for wastefulness from Japan – which at times had to be seen to be believed – the margin of their victory could genuinely have embarrassed the Spanish.
It is difficult to quantify the magnitude or otherwise of an Olympic opening group game but Japan still defeated a team which included David de Gea, Jordi Alba and Juan Mata from the start. Those players, and the remainder of this Spanish squad, will carry the heavy burden of succeeding a side who have made international history in major tournaments.
In Spain's defence, they played the entire second half with 10 men. Iñigo Martínez tugged Kensuke Nagai sufficiently to knock the Japan forward to the ground as he bore down on goal three minutes before the interval. By that stage, Spain were already a goal down.
"With one player less, we were forced to chase the game," said Luis Milla, Spain's coach. "That isn't the style of the Spanish team." So there you have it – perhaps the best way to beat the all-conquering Spanish team is to somehow trigger a bout of indiscipline. Getting a goal in front before such a scenario occurs, of course, may be the tricky part.
Milla conceded there is added heat on his squad, given the recent Spanish defence of the European Championships. "We already knew about this extra pressure to win a gold medal, coming into the games," the coach said. "Everyone at the Spanish FA is delighted to have this pressure."There may be more to come. If Spain fail to win Group D, there is the very real prospect of them meeting Brazil at the quarter-final stage.
Yuki Otsu may have proved Japan's scoring hero but their stars featured elsewhere. Nagai was a constant menace to the Spanish defence while, in midfield, Hiroshi Kiyotake excelled.
"This is still only the first match," cautioned the Japan coach, Takashi Sekizuka. "There are still many games to play. We look forward to playing alongside Spain again in the knock-out round."
Spain's failure to defend a perfectly routine corner from Takahiro Ogihara prompted their demise. Under a weak challenge by the Barcelona full-back Martin Montoya, Otsu calmly slotted home.
The aberration from Martínez followed, it would have a key influence on the second half where Japan probably could not believe how many chances they created and squandered.
De Gea saved acrobatically from Keigo Higashi before Nagai screwed a shot wide in the culmination of a wonderful sweeping move also involving Hotaru Yamaguchi and Higashi.Kiyotake should have had the goal his overall play merited but could not hit the target at the end of a burst from midfield. The Manchester United goalkeeper spread himself to save from Nagai and Yamaguchi shanked an attempt well wide, both in the game's dying stages.
Spain had offered next to nothing by way of a response. Milla's team were sluggish and lacking in invention. "We will treat the last two [group] games like cup finals," the coach insisted. Thankfully for Milla, the Spanish are have proved rather good at them.
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玉木宏、藤木直人、佐藤健 
